Hundreds of desks were left empty by civil servants at Welsh Government offices worth millions of pounds this year, figures show.
The £22million Welsh Government HQ at Llandudno Junction, Wales, was built for 650 staff with 409 desks in 2010.
But only 34 staff a day attended the headquarters between January and May this year, with many choosing to work from home.
And in Cardiff, South Wales, only 415 civil servants went into offices where there are 2,697 desks.
It comes after Cabinet Office minister Jeremy Quin urged Whitehall staff to stop working from home and said the ‘default position’ should be working together in the office.
The £22million Welsh Government HQ (pictured) at Llandudno Junction, Wales, was built for 650 staff with 409 desks in 2010
A Welsh Government spokesman said: ‘Having the flexibilities of office, remote and hybrid working can increase productivity, improve work-life balance, and deliver carbon reduction benefits.
‘To ensure office space across our estate is effectively used we’re offering available space to other public bodies.
‘We continue to explore options for sharing capacity further as we look to build on our existing arrangements.’
The Welsh Government has already leased some space to other public sector employers like the Student Loans Company, NHS Collaborative, North Wales Economic Ambition Board, and the Senedd Commission.
But Tory MS Janet Finch-Saunders said: ‘We should all be getting back to work. People expect you to be at your desk, they don’t expect you to be at home.
‘The Welsh Government needs to be more proactive in terms of trying to get people back to work.’
It comes after Cabinet Office minister Jeremy Quin urged Whitehall staff to stop working from home and said the ‘default position’ should be working together in the office.
In May, just 29 per cent of staff at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) turned up at its Marsham Street offices in Westminster.
And the figures were barely better at the London headquarters of the Home Office (31 per cent), Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (32 per cent), HM Revenue and Customs (also 32 per cent) and Foreign Office (34 per cent).
The departmental data for the week commencing May 29 must be put in the context of it being the half-term holidays for schools and the House of Commons.
But average occupancy for these five departments over the whole of May was still only at around 50 per cent for them all – ranging between 43 and 56 per cent.
Concerns were also raised over the rate of sick days being taken without a note among Whitehall staff.
Ministry of Defence records show 35,065 sick days were taken in the last year without a note, relating to 2,112 employees.
Average occupancy for these five departments over the whole of May was still only at around 50 per cent for them all – ranging between 43 and 56 per cent. Pictured: The Cabinet Office
Freedom of information requests by campaign group the TaxPayers’ Alliance also found Defra staff took 1,218 days without a sick note, the Department of Health and Social Care had 954, and the Cabinet Office 308.
Rules state workers must provide a sick note if they are off ill for more than seven days in a row.
A government spokesman said it was ‘committed to ensuring we clamp down on non-compliance’ over sick leave.
For most staff, their stated workplace is an office location – but the department’s hybrid working policy applies to all employees.
For a small number of staff with health or other circumstances such as disabilities, the department has an individual risk assessment process to manage exemptions.
A Government spokesman told MailOnline today: ‘There is agreement across government on there being clear benefits from face-to-face, collaborative working and departments remain committed to having staff working in offices at pre-pandemic levels.’
